infosec

Drinking at Security Cons

by Bill Brenner May 29, 2014 Well-Being

A friend from the security community, Rob Fuller, has written a post about drinking at conferences. It’s an activity I engaged in with abandon until I decided to quit drinking on New Year’s Day 2010. His post reminds me of what the transition to sobriety was like in conference settings. I drank my way through the first few RSA conferences to cope with nerves. You could drink all you want for free at the vendor parties,…  [Read More]

Addicted to Accolades

by Bill Brenner April 30, 2014 Addiction

Last year, David McCullough Jr. — longtime Wellesley High School English teacher and son of one of my favorite authors — gave a commencement speech in which he told graduates the hard truth: They’re not special. Mood music: You can see the whole speech here, but here’s a key passage for me: In our unspoken but not so subtle Darwinian competition with one another — which springs, I think, from our fear of our own…  [Read More]

Bullied by the Word “Bully”

by Bill Brenner April 28, 2014 Communication Skills

Walk into any school these days and you’ll see anti-bullying posters everywhere. I’m happy to see it, because kids need to learn what it is and how to stand up for themselves. Unfortunately, they’re taking cues from grownups who don’t always know what they’re talking about. Mood music: I was reminded of this after reading a blog post from Brian Martin, A.K.A. Jericho, of attrition.org. Martin got into a protracted debate recently with Elizabeth Weidman, mother of security…  [Read More]

You See a SecBurnout Cult; I See Common Sense

by Bill Brenner April 17, 2014 Communication Skills

Some folks are pissed over my recent posts about efforts in the security community to fight job burnout and depression. I won’t change your minds, so I’ll just clarify a few things and move along. People have made five observations: The data is far too insufficient to declare a problem specific to the security community. Without data, all we have is opinion. The greater InfoSec Burnout movement and I have made it sound like this…  [Read More]

You’re a Good Man, Trey Ford

by Bill Brenner December 11, 2013 Gratitude

As most of my friends in the information security community know, one of our own — Trey Ford — got left out in the cold last week when Black Hat’s powers that be decided they no longer needed a general manager to handle their annual summer conference. He’s following the proven path of seeking new job leads on the social networks. But he’s doing something else that makes him worthy of mention here. Mood music:…  [Read More]

Infosec’s Mental Health Role Models

by Bill Brenner December 2, 2013 Depression

This weekend some friends asked about the reaction this blog has had in my industry. Truth is, I was unprepared for what followed the blog’s launch four years ago. In hindsight it makes perfect sense. Mood music: Friends asked if my information security colleagues were weirded out by the blog and whether it had an adverse effect on my ability to interview people. In fact, the opposite happened. By the time I was done baring…  [Read More]

Friends Of The Gifted Need To Learn Suicide Intervention Tactics

by Bill Brenner January 17, 2013 Depression

One thing I’ve learned over the years: Some super-smart, super-gifted, ahead-of-their-time people often battle with depression and eventually lose their war. So it was for my best friend who took his life 16 years ago. So it has been for far too many of my industry peers. Mood music: I’m thinking of them and for those who continue to struggle with depression daily. I’m grateful, particularly in my industry, for those who have stepped up…  [Read More]

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